The Most IMPORTANT Step Towards Better Grades

Have you ask yourself this question --> Why are my results in school so bad? 

Do you think it is due to external factors such as watching too much tv, not consistently putting enough hard work into your studies, playing too much computer games etc? If you think those are the reasons why you had such lousy grades, then it has a simple solution. Just put in at least 2 hours a day to revise your homework or tutorial. You should be able to see vast improvements in your grades in your next report card. Simple as that. Full stop. 

OR do you think that it is due to INTERNAL factors like telling yourself --> 
"I am not good enough" 
"I am not smart" 
"I am weak acadamically" 
"Maths are just too tough for me" 
"Those foreign students are really smart, I can't compete with them" 
"I am a slow learner" 
"I will never get A or B grades" 

If you have any of the above mentioned thoughts, then this is what I call an internal factor. And internal factors are the MOST IMPORTANT reason why you can't ace in your studies. Any negative thoughts that you have will be planted in your subconscious mind. If you keep telling yourself that you are just not good enough, your subconscious mind will be having the same "thinking" as you. Your thoughts will be absorbed by your subconscious mind, in return it will be transformed into reality --> your grades will be bad because you keep telling yourself you are no good and this thought has become a reality. Do not underestimate your subconscious mind, it can do a lot of good if used properly and can be equally devastating if you implant it will negative thoughts. 

Keys To Success In College

College education is a big step for anybody to take. Many young people are overwhelmed when they are standing on that threshold. However, there are some tips you can follow that will help you along. If you follow them precisely they can become your keys to success in your higher education ! 

It is wise to start up with the planning early. In fact, it's never to soon to think about what you want to do with your college education. A question like 'What do you want to do with your life?' can be pretty Scary, huh? But as a matter of fact, it shouldn't be. Since planning has to do with questions like What I will be doing ten years from now, it should be a fun and exciting session to look forward to 

But getting into the right school and getting where you need to go is tough. The competition is stiff. Everybody is trying to get into the most coveted schools, so you have to think about your strengths. 

Unfortunately, those SAT and ACT scores are important. I know, that's no accurate test of what a brilliant and creative and deserving individual you are. But, that's the way the system works. Do you want to be admitted into a top-notch Ivy League school? Then you have to get those scores as high as you can. Actually, it's good to do that no matter where you are applying. 

What else makes a difference? Your whole academic record will help you get into the school of your choosing. Watch you attendance and grades. Those will all be factors. Last year, the admissions boards had the toughest time choosing applicants. The stakes are being raised, and you don't want to get left behind. So, don't blow off those easy classes or settle for second best when it comes to grades; it matters in the end. 

Test scores are important, and they are getting higher every year. What this means, is that you will have a tougher time than those before you. The competition is high. One reason for this is the wide availability of study guides to help you crack the tests. Everyone is buying these and studying, and it's paying off with high test scores. This is why it's more important than ever to blow those scores away. 

Teaching English To Non-English Speakers

Teaching the English language to a non english speaking person can be exciting and interesting. If this is of interest to you, consider traveling to other countries to teach. 

It is generally preferred for the English teacher to be a native English speaker. 

Here are some common terms you should familiarize yourself with: 

Before you excitedly answer any employment ads you should learn the meaning of commonly used terms as well as recommendations for working locally or abroad. 

TEFL: Teaching English Foreign Language; often refers to teaching English in a foreign country. Known to students as EFL classes. 

TESL: Teaching English as a Second Language; usually refers to teaching English to foreigners in an English speaking country. Known to students as ESL classes. 

Would you prefer to teach locally or abroad? 

For people who wish to travel TEFL can be a great opportunity to interact with new cultures and to finance traveling. It is important to investigate the country you will be traveling to as well as the employer offering the position to ensure you will be safe and have reliable work. You may decide to work with an agency based in your home country that will assist you with legal questions and assist you in making living arrangements. 

While many foreign positions are available to individuals without experience or certification you will likely find the education and resources of a class to be valuable before taking an assignment. If you think you would like to try this career out you might offer your services locally, as a private tutor, or take an instruction class to familiarize yourself with the responsibilities and work required to teach a language. 

The Secret to Master Math

“ Is there an easy way to master math ? ”. I’m sure you must have thought this at least once in your life ( if not before every other math test ). You must have felt at some point that how come some people are so good at Math while others fail to do even a simple addition correctly. Well if you have, then cheer up! , you are not the only one who feels like that. 

Several studies have been done so far to determine what makes the math skill of one brain way superior to others. The M.R.I study done on people of different age groups and of different educational levels has produced a surprising result. The Study has clearly shown that morphologically (i.e. in terms of shape, size and structure) the brain of both the Math dudes and the so called Math duds is identical. ( And you always thought a missing part was responsible for your bad scorecard ). So where does the difference lie ? The Study has also confirmed that the Math dudes have higher brain activity in their inferior parietal cortex ( that part of the brain that is supposed to deal with math ) 

So what does all this add up to?Simply a driver conflict in the mind. 

Before I reveal the secret to master math, let me tell you about an incident that happened not so long ago. One fine day my pc at home crashed. Anyway, before it crashed completely it was not working like a Super computer. To begin with, it had stopped playing any song or sound long ago and its floppy drive would not work as well (ok it was an old machine but believe me I was using it purely out of emotional reasons). For sometime now I was thinking of getting those parts replaced if not throwing the entire thing in the dust-bin. 

Anyhow, I decided to do the clean reinstallation. After an endless wait in front of the blue screen, came the moment of glory. The screen read ‘ Your computer is ready to boot for the first time.’ Immediately after that, the first thing I heard was the sweet old churning of my hard disk and then I saw the soft blink of my CD-Rom drive. And then guess what happened, the long dead floppy drive also followed the suit and started to blink. “ Hallelujah ” I cried out. Now I had realized that it was the driver conflict that was stopping my otherwise good hardware (yeah!) from working correctly. 

For those who are wondering right now what ‘driver’ is, it is a small program responsible for making your hardware do what it does. 

I became so optimistic that I went on a searching spree on the internet to find the right driver for my sound card as well. Finally, I did find what I was looking for and installed it manually. The result ? As I am punching this article on my computer (yes the same old one) my favorite John Denver song is playing in the background. 

Now coming back to what we had started out with, as to why some people lack the math skill completely. What is that well kept secret to master math ? The answer is just one word - updates. People who lack math skill have not bothered to update their number crunching driver. 

By now everybody is aware that computers are based on human brain. 

The Five Proven Ways to Combine Job and Studies

On any course there is always at least one student who manages to succeed with studies, while others are doomed to fail. My friend Sally was like that. With an agenda of tasks to accomplish at work and a younger brother to look after, she always had good marks at university and even got her First-Class Degree with no troubles at all! 

After my astonishment was dispelled, I started wondering how it came that Sally could successfully combine her job, studies and private life. And since I was about to start my own career being yet a university student, I kept a close eye on my friend trying to figure out her success formula. Step by step, I learned her tricks and adopted her studying methods, which were a good start in life. 

1. Understand What You Need to Succeed at 

The first thing Sally taught me is that getting a degree is not just about learning biology, history, English or whatever. It is all about understanding what you want to succeed – what, in fact, the university wants from you and what you will get in return. 

Thus, Sally explained me that if you want to save plenty of time for the things you care about rather than doing unnecessary paper work for the university, you need to have a feel for the education market and sell your inspirations. Consequently, it is important to understand what the lecturer wants from you or what the essay marketer is searching for. 

In this respect, Sally saw all lecturers as customers that fall in two broad categories. The first category includes teachers who consider lecturing as an unwelcome interruption to their research work. With them, Sally simply pitched her essays so that her opinions appeared more as evidence that she had read and understood the key contributions to the debate, rather as an attempt to pull down the monuments. 

However, it was completely different with other teachers, i.e. the second category of teachers who enjoy teaching and discussing new ideas. To make a favourable impression on them, Sally would present her arguments to show that she had done her reading and understood the key concepts. Moreover, she would try to add something more to the issue rather than rake over familiar ground. 

Pretty soon I understood that studying is all about working out what is wanted and then delivering it. This tactic never let me down! 

Banking For Students And Graduates

If you are a student or have recently graduated, then there a large number of bank accounts and financial products designed specifically for you. Although students used to be much derided for the large government grants they received, those days are long gone and students today have to be financially astute in order to avoid large debts. If you are a student or recent graduate then here are some tips about the types of accounts to look for. 

Why so many student accounts? 

Student and graduate accounts are more and more common, and they usually have a wide range of features and good rates. Although students are generally fairly poor and cannot pay back money they borrow, banks want to offer these accounts to students in the hope that they will remain loyal to their company once they are earning good money. 

Student accounts 

When you go to university you might have a simple current account, but the best thing to do is to open a dedicated student account. Student accounts offer a wide range of benefits, including vouchers and discounts for clothing and record shops. However, the most important part of your student account is the interest-free overdraft 

Overdrafts 

When you are at university it is likely that at some point you are going to need an overdraft facility to handle the fees whilst not bringing in a lot of money. Therefore it is essential that you pick an account with a good interest-free overdraft limit. Try and find the bank that has the highest level of interest-free overdraft, because any unauthorised borrowing will cost you a lot of money. 

How To Become a Fighter Pilot

Becoming a fighter pilot isn't something that happens overnight. It requires lots of time, dedication and perseverance if you want to be successful. A special type of person is required to join such an elite group. Funnily enough, most people think that becoming a fighter pilot is mostly about flying, when in fact that isn't the case. You also need to successfully train as an officer. So you're primarily an officer, even if you continue on to be a fighter pilot. Your primary job is to defend the USA against its enemies, and any career aspirations are secondary to that. 

There are three possible ways to train as an officer - service academy, Officer Candidate School (OCS) or Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC). As a high school student, you should apply to a service academy if you want to become an officer. You can choose between the Air Force Academy, Annapolis (Navy & Marines), West Point (Army) or the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. All of them put you through rigorous military training, and you also obtain a Bachelor of Science degree. If you have a strong aptitude to advanced math and science then you'll have a much better chance of succeeding. 

If you're planning to enter one of the academies, then be aware that the competition to get in is fierce. You'll need a high school grade point average of 3.8 as a cadet, as well as a SAT score of 1300. This has to include a minimum of 1050 for verbal and math. It's a good idea to have a strong extra-curricular activity record as well, even more so if those activities demonstrate leadership or athletic skills. 

So if you want to enter a service academy, earn a commission and receive a college education, the path is simple. It's not easy though - you'll need to perform very well in high school, and not just inside the classroom. It takes a long time to work your way through the application process. You certainly don't just hand over a simple form and expect to be accepted into a service academy. You need three letters of recommendation, extensive paperwork, and even to be nominated by your Congressman. To improve your chances of success, start preparing your application early, and certainly don't start any later than your junior year. 

Big Seminar Tips - Internet Marketing

There are so many ways to benefit from attending Internet marketing seminars. Various companies and groups organize big seminars. Probably one of the most well known and popular Internet marketing seminars is Armand Morin's Big Seminar. It is there that you are guaranteed to see and even meet a Who's Who of Internet Marketing.

As an owner of an online business, Internet marketing seminars will help you improve your marketing strategies. Big seminars not only focus on the ideas and strategies that are presented to you by the speakers during the seminar, but you can also interact with other business owners like you. You can share your knowledge, experience, etc, which will definitely prove to be beneficial for you and as well as others.

Attending big seminars is definitely worth your time. Try to get as much as possible out of any seminar you attend. Here are some of the ways to make your internet marketing seminar more worthwhile.

Check out the different people who attend the big seminars so that you can easily approach any person you want to talk to. Or you can arrange a special meeting with them after the seminar and can have a discussion in your field of interest.

Try to take pictures of the internet marketing seminar whenever possible. Take your digital camera and take pictures of the seminar and the other people who are present. Pictures not only give you something to remember from the big seminar but it can also serve as a way of making friends and making the big seminar memorable. You can post some pictures on your web site, in blogs or any media you want. You can earn some credibility as an experienced Internet marketer by documenting the seminar.

If you want, you can also send the photos to the influential people you met at the internet marketing seminar. Attach a note to it, such as, “It was nice to meet you”, or any message you want to send. This is a great way to build good relationships with some important people in the internet marketing industry.

Learning Skills - Eight Great Ones

Learning effectively and efficiently requires some basic learning skills. In other words, we need to learn how to learn. Here are some ways to develop those skills. 

1. Identify what is essential. This is one of the most important learning skills to develop. If you are learning to drive a car, getting used to the steering wheel, gas pedal and brake pedal are essential, right? All the rest can come later. 

Knowing the essentials helps you make sense of all the rest. If you are studying economics, for example, you need to understand supply and demand. Then it is easier to understand how good weather can depress commodity prices, or how government spending can drive prices up. 

How do you identify what is most essential? A simple way is to ask, "What is important here?" We often forget to do this. Ask yourself this question, but ask others too, if they are teaching you. In textbooks, the key points are often listed after a chapter. Read these first, and again after reading the chapter. 

2. Relate new material to what you already know. Suppose you are a doctor, for example, and you are reading an article about car maintenance. Finding parallels between the two, like the concept of dirty oil and a blood toxins, will help you remember what you learn. Do this enough and you'll train yourself to automatically look for connections between things. You'll think more creatively, and improve your memory, because having more connections makes it easier to recall things. 

3. Compare and contrast. Think to yourself "That's like this," or "How is that different from this?" This process categorizes and arranges facts and ideas in your mind, making them easier to access later. It is like using a mental filing cabinet instead of just piling things up on a mental desk. 

Army Correspondence Courses - Preparing For Your Future

The United States Army is an education-driven force. Whether you plan on a career in the Armed Forces or not, Army correspondence courses are available to prepare you for your future career. 

The Army Correspondence Course Program (ACCP) 

The Army Correspondence Course Program helps you keep your skills current and prepare for advancement in your military career. As you complete modules, you earn points toward promotion. Each module has several subcourses in it that you complete one at a time. 

The Army Correspondence Course Program gives you training specific to your professional field. You can take courses for skill qualification development or to advance in your MOS, too. 

eArmyU 
eArmyU is a program that the Army sponsors that allows you to take college courses over the internet on your off-duty time. eArmyU helps you prepare for a future non-military career, or to simply take courses for your own personal interest and development. 

Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) 

DANTES provides military personell with educational opportunities compatible with the military lifestyle. You can take career training or college courses through several different DANTES programs. DANTES is very cutting edge and innovative in the way education is delivered to deployed troops. They utilize traditional learning, satellite courses, e-learning, video, courses that you can download to a PDA and even Podcast classes. 

Top Five Tips for College Freshmen and Sophmores

1. Let Your Major Pick You 

A lot of college students ask me what majors will look best on paper when it comes time to apply for a job or to graduate school. At this point in your college education, you really have no business committing to a career yet. You should be exploring – different classes, different internships and part-time jobs, different activities, different professors. Take a wide variety of classes, even if variety is not mandated by your school’s graduation requirements, and you’ll figure out pretty quickly which ones you’re passionate about. 

2. Follow the Professors 

Find out who the best teachers are and load up on those classes. The best teachers could lecture every day on the history of Brazilian trade unions and you’d still be fascinated and learn how to think. A site like RateMyProfessors.com has its limitations, but it’s just one more resource to help you find the best ones. (And if you want to see that shoe on the other foot, check out RateYourStudents.Blogspot.com.) Start cultivating relationships with your professors – be engaged in class and talk to them during office hours. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Aside from the academic benefits, you’ll need them for graduate school recommendations in just a few years, and sometimes they have industry contacts as well. 

3. Do Your Own Career Research? 

Many professors and college administrators (including folks at the career center) haven’t spent much time outside of academia, so don’t treat them as your only resources as you explore careers and line up internships or other job opportunities. Make every summer in college a strategic part of your post-graduation career planning – many employers make permanent offers to their summer interns.